Hearty Welsh character actor Harry Secombe spent most of his formative years on stage as a singer. His acute comic knowhow was thoroughly exploited on the BBC's nonsensical comedy series The Goon Show, where Secombe worked with such seasoned laughcatchers as Spike Milligan and Peter Sellers. Secombe's film work, beginning in 1957, has been all too limited so far as his fans are concerned. International audiences are most familiar with Secombe's performance as Mr. Bumble the beadle in the 1968 Oscar-winning film musical Oliver!. Harry Secombe was honored with the Order of the British Empire in 1981. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide